There is a force in humanity that lies in different people at varying levels. This force is what gives the president the ability to control a nation. This force is commonly acknowledged as power. Power is defined as the amount of control one has over a portion of society and over themselves. Power is the origin of a debatable question involving To Kill A Mockingbird’s most complex character Mayella Ewell. Does Mayella Ewell have power? She shows power during the trial with Tom Robinson where she accuses him of rape. Although power exists in many different ways Mayella’s questionable influence is best measured in the branches of race, gender, and class. Mayella’s race is her strong suit and grants the most power during the trial. Mayella is Caucasian and the defendant Robinson is an African american. The story takes place in a southern town saturated with decades of hate and segregation in the early 1930’s. This setting amplifies Mayella’s racial power over Tom giving her the upper hand in the trail because even if the jury firmly believes in Tom they are too afraid to challenge the status quo. Lee shows the racial power differences between Tom and Mayella during their testimonies. Mayella's treatment by Atticus is shown to be very respectful during the trial as he refers to her as “ma’am and sayin’ Miss. Mayella”. Her power is shown through the respect and being called ma’am. Anyone who spoke with her during the trial would call her ma’am because in the south during the thirties a white woman was entitled to a respectful name. Tom’s treatment however is not as kind because Mr. Glimmer constantly referred to Tom as boy. This is such an insulting name to be given to a grown man and he is only bestowed this title because of his race. These labels do show the difference of racial power as a white woman is called ma’am and a black man is labeled boy. This gives the Caucasian Mayella racial power over the trial. Mayella’s gender has no effect on her overall power because it is a mixed port.
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Her gender allows for the story of Tom raping her to be more believable. When Tom gives his testimony Mr. Glimmer points out the abnormality of a strong man like Tom being taken advantage of by a young woman. Mayella gains power because people are more willing to accept the normal occurrence than to pick apart her story. Where she loses power is outside of the trial, especially when it comes to her father “ She says she never kissed a grown man before… She says what her papa do to her don’t count…” this quote is significant because it shows how Bob treats her outside of the trial. Her father, Bob Ewell takes advantage of her through verbal, physical, and even sexual means and he does this because she is a woman. Bob has shown through the novel that he is too cowardly to mess with males, but he has no problems with women or children. He does depower Mayella by dominating her at home, robbing her of free will, and socially isolating her. Mayella’s gender grants power in the trial, however her gender does cause her to be dominated by her father making for a median source of power Where she loses the most power is in her class because she has nothing therefore she
Her gender allows for the story of Tom raping her to be more believable. When Tom gives his testimony Mr. Glimmer points out the abnormality of a strong man like Tom being taken advantage of by a young woman. Mayella gains power because people are more willing to accept the normal occurrence than to pick apart her story. Where she loses power is outside of the trial, especially when it comes to her father “ She says she never kissed a grown man before… She says what her papa do to her don’t count…” this quote is significant because it shows how Bob treats her outside of the trial. Her father, Bob Ewell takes advantage of her through verbal, physical, and even sexual means and he does this because she is a woman. Bob has shown through the novel that he is too cowardly to mess with males, but he has no problems with women or children. He does depower Mayella by dominating her at home, robbing her of free will, and socially isolating her. Mayella’s gender grants power in the trial, however her gender does cause her to be dominated by her father making for a median source of power Where she loses the most power is in her class because she has nothing therefore she